By Ola Kassim
The Siege of NASS premises by operatives of the DSS ordered
by its Director Lawal Daura exposes the basic weakness in President
Buhari’s administration that has plagued it right from its inception.
This weakness is the lack of genetic (ethnic), geographic, religious
skills, and gender diversity in the decision making process
of the administration.
Even though Nigeria is on paper governed by a constitutional democracy,
this incident has revealed that with few exceptions that she is truly governed
by a kitchen cabinet dominated by those the media have christened as the
‘cabal.’
Even though President Buhari obtained a plurality of majority votes
from all regions of Nigeria with the exception of the SE and the SS,
the composition of the ‘kitchen cabinet’ in which most
important decisions are made is (with the exception of Vice
President Osinbajo) monotonously northern Nigerian.
President Buhari waited (wasted) 6 to 9 months before he filled ministerial
positions. The executive appointments he made during the first
six months which do not require senatorial confirmation were predominantly
those from northern Nigeria with a disproportionate number being from
the Daura axis of his homestate–including members of his own extended
family.
President Buhari’s excuse for the lopsided appointments then was that he only
appointed those that he knew very well and had worked with in the previous
administration that he led and in other positions he held in previous military administrations.
How can a President of a nation of over 180 million people know enough from his personal
experience the best talents available from among the diversity of all the 400 plus majority and minority ethnic groups
in Nigeria? This is an impossible task!
When the leader of a nation picks for important appointments (that are not subject to constitutional requirements and
oversight by the NASS)
only those from a narrow segment of the society he inadvertently hobbles the effectiveness of his government in several ways–chiefly
because those that he hired into the most senior posts would also end up hiring those whom they know best.
The end result would be that the government no longer truly reflects the ethnic, religious and gender diversity beyond
those mandated by the constitution.
The current Nigerian government is dysfunctional for the same reasons that incestuous families are dysfunctional and unsustainable
in the long run.
President Buhari’s biggest mistake was that he chose to assure the security of his government and prevent a military overthrow
by appointing into powerful offices in the security agencies, military and police mostly those of northern Nigerian origin instead
of resting the security of his government on the maintenance of the tenets of the Nigerian constitution which forbids
unlawful military take over of democratically elected government.
Nigeria’s First Lady warned several months ago that the cabal surrounding her husband’s Presidency might end up being
its Achilles’ heel. She might have spoken too soon.
The unfortunate circumstance we find ourselves in Nigeria is that there are currently no credible alternatives in sight. If there are they are yet to
emerge from the dark. The current parade of Presidential aspirants in Nigeria does not leave much hope for the future.